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INDIANAPOLIS – Butler University hired LaVall Jordan in mid-June, a time when college basketball coaches are out recruiting and everything for next season should be set. The Bulldogs lost four of their top seven scorers, then two of the five signees lured by Chris Holtmann.

And did we mention Butler was picked for eighth place in the Big East?

But this is Butler. Butler is supposed to make the NCAA tournament every year, even though traditional powers such as Indiana, Illinois, Connecticut, Georgetown, St. John’s and Marquette do not.

Butler did so it in its first season under Jordan. The coach had his share of critics on social media, and he sometimes joined them in questioning his own decisions at postgame news conferences.

Bottom line: Butler made the NCAA tournament for the 10th time in 12 years and achieved a 12th 20-win season in 13 years.

“It seems to me, they may have found a rising star,” ESPN analyst Fran Fraschilla said. “From what I know about Butler basketball and the philosophy, it’s one thing to win games and go to the tournament. It’s another to adhere to something that permeates the university and the basketball program.”

Jordan’s first Butler team (20-13) is a No. 10 seed and will meet No. 7 seed Arkansas (23-11) in the NCAA East Regional at Detroit on Friday. It will be a home-state NCAA debut for the coach, a native of Albion, Mich.

Jordan, 38, is the second-youngest coach among 68 in the tournament. (The younger one is Wes Miller, 35, of UNC Greensboro.) Jordan is one of seven who are in their first season at their respective schools.

Six different coaches in the 2000s – most in the nation -- have taken Butler to the tournament. Indiana and Utah have each had five. Also doing so in their first Butler seasons were Thad Matta (2001), Brad Stevens (2008) and Holtmann (2015).

Barry Collier coached Jordan on Butler's 2000 tournament team. As athletic director, Collier hired Jordan to be the next coach.

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Butler's Kelan Martin talks Arkansas, the selection show and more.
David Woods/IndyStar

“Obviously, there’s a huge amount of pride in Butler and the way that we do things and the way that we’ve done things, regardless of who’s sitting in my seat,” Jordan said. “So there’s been consistency. So you just want to make sure you uphold the standard.

“I’m happy for our seniors because they’ve taken their leadership role serious and grown through the course of the year to get us to this point. Now, we talk about not being happy about there, which Butler never has been. We always want to go in and advance.”

Jordan would have merited more accolades if Butler had finished third in the Big East instead of tying for sixth.

The Bulldogs were 9-9, including a home loss to Seton Hall in which they led by 11 points in the second half and a loss at St. John’s in which they led by five with less than 15 seconds left. Butler did score its first Big East tournament victory, beating Seton Hall 75-74.

Willard said Jordan made Kelan Martin, Kamar Baldwin and Tyler Wideman “the focal point” of Butler’s offense. Martin became Butler's first league scoring champion in 31 years. Jordan was an assistant for six seasons under Michigan’s John Beilein, whose teams consistently feature efficient offenses.

“I think LaVall has . . . the league is lucky to have him,” Willard said. “Obviously, Butler is lucky to have him.”

Fraschilla closely observed Jordan during last year’s Horizon League tournament, when the coach took 10th-seeded Milwaukee to the championship game. When the Panthers practiced, Fraschilla said, they did so as if they were No. 1 seeds. Jordan’s countenance exuded confidence.

Foremost criticism of Jordan is failure to bring in more recruits. He has one high school signee, Markeese Hastings of Wyoming, Mich., and brought in mid-year Duke transfer Jordan Tucker. Tucker's ranking (40th by ESPN) is the highest of any player ever landed by Butler.

Butler has one commitment in the 2019 class, 6-9 John-Michael Mulloy, who has helped Carmel reach the Class 4A semistate. Jordan has offers out to six other prospects and more time to build relationships after last summer's whirlwind process. Butler's immediate need is for a graduate transfer to succeed Martin at forward.

The “proof in the pudding,” Fraschilla said, will be in Jordan’s recuiting. The Bulldogs could again be picked eighth, or worse, in the Big East after losing Martin and Wideman.

That is for 2019. Jordan has won over the 2018 players, even if skeptics remain.

“Personally, for me, coach Vall is the best coach I’ve ever played for – as a man, on and off the court,” said junior guard Paul Jorgensen. “I respect him as a role model, as a leader, as a husband. He’s someone to aspire to be.

“So I’ll always have his back, and I think our whole team will, no matter what.”

Call IndyStar reporter David Woods at (317) 444-6195. Follow him on Twitter: @DavidWoods007.

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Changing coaches

Schools with most coaches taking teams to the NCAA tournament during the 2000s: